"DWalker" <n***@none.com> wrote in message
news:ea%23gI65QGHA.5584@TK2MSFTNGP12.phx.gbl...
> What do most companies do to re-brand a computer, when an employee
> leaves and another one takes over?  I am surprised that I can't find a
> lot of info on this using Google.  I don't think Windows and AD makes
> all this easy.
>
> I know that in XP and 2000 both, you can rename a (local) user, but
> that's not all that's required.
>
> We have most computers set up with the same user name and password on
> the local computer as well as on the domain.
>
> Let's say Susie left and Jane was hired to take her place, and of course
> Jane will use Susie's old computer and needs access to the same things
> that Susie used on the server (the shared folders).   We don't want to
> make Jane sign in as Susie.
>
> So, besides renaming the local user from Susie to Jane, what else is
> required?  Should we add a new domain user Jane, or rename the domain
> user Susie?  (Can you rename a domain user?  I forget.)
>
> Also, I would like to have the C:\Documents and Settings\Susie\... path
> changed to Jane.  This is not crucial, but would be nice.  (Why do all
> of MY installations use C:\Documents and Settings\WINDOWS.Whomever\?
> Why the WINDOWS. part?)
>
> Finally, what are the ramifications of changing the computer name?
>
> In short, where's the cool script that will completely change a
> computer's identity while leaving everything intact?  I would like to
> leave the *desktop icons* and layout intact also, and this seems to
> change when you leave and rejoin a domain, or rename a computer.
>
> I appreciate any insight into this.  Thanks.
>
> David Walker

>
> "DWalker" <n***@none.com> wrote in message
> news:ea%23gI65QGHA.5584@TK2MSFTNGP12.phx.gbl...
>> What do most companies do to re-brand a computer, when an employee
>> leaves and another one takes over?  I am surprised that I can't find
>> a lot of info on this using Google.  I don't think Windows and AD
>> makes all this easy.
>>
>> I know that in XP and 2000 both, you can rename a (local) user, but
>> that's not all that's required.
>>
>> We have most computers set up with the same user name and password on
>> the local computer as well as on the domain.
>>
>> Let's say Susie left and Jane was hired to take her place, and of
>> course Jane will use Susie's old computer and needs access to the
>> same things that Susie used on the server (the shared folders).   We
>> don't want to make Jane sign in as Susie.
>>
>> So, besides renaming the local user from Susie to Jane, what else is
>> required?  Should we add a new domain user Jane, or rename the domain
>> user Susie?  (Can you rename a domain user?  I forget.)
>>
>> Also, I would like to have the C:\Documents and Settings\Susie\...
>> path changed to Jane.  This is not crucial, but would be nice.  (Why
>> do all of MY installations use C:\Documents and
>> Settings\WINDOWS.Whomever\? Why the WINDOWS. part?)
>>
>> Finally, what are the ramifications of changing the computer name?
>>
>> In short, where's the cool script that will completely change a
>> computer's identity while leaving everything intact?  I would like to
>> leave the *desktop icons* and layout intact also, and this seems to
>> change when you leave and rejoin a domain, or rename a computer.
>>
>> I appreciate any insight into this.  Thanks.
>>
>> David Walker
>
>
>

"Oli Restorick [MVP]" <o**@mvps.org> wrote in
news:#eDOeL9QGHA.5116@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl:

> Hi there
>
> "DWalker" <n***@none.com> wrote in message
> news:eh14Cj8QGHA.2536@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
>> By "local account" I mean there is a local username that is created
>> when the computer is set up... When you first install Windows (or
>> turn on an OEM computer for the first time) it asks you for "your
>> name".  Doesn't that name become a local logon?  There is a list of
>> users who are allowed to log on to the local computer, and that's
>> what I meant by local account.  Don't you HAVE to have a local
>> account?  Maybe my terminology is wrong (I am a programmer but I
>> don't have formal network or AD training).
> The only local accounts you have to have are administrator and guest
> (the latter is disabled by default).  When you set up an XP machine to
> be part of a workgroup (rather than a domain), you are taken through a
> wizard that asks you to create local accounts.  If you join the domain
> during setup, you don't get this.  If you are prompted to create user
> accounts, just create a dummy one and delete it when you're joined to
> the domain.
>
>>> It is not considered good practice to rename user accounts to deal
>>> with peopel coming and going.  I have never heard of people doing
>>> that before.
>>
>> Never?  No one does this?  Not even in small companies?
> Never seen anyone do it in practice.
>
>> How do you name your computers?
> Personally, I use the asset tag (serial number) of the machine as its
> names. Other naming shcemes I've seen are based on location.  For a
> small company, how about naming machines after something abstract
> (e.g. moons of Jupiter), cartoon characters, or something like that?
>
>>> When giving permissions to various resources, use groups.  As a
>>> general rule (home directories being the exception), never assign
>>> permissions on a resource to a user directly.  Give a group (e.g.
>>> "Marketing department") permission to a resource, and make the
>>> relevant users a member of that group.
>>>
>>
>> There are 7 people in the company; everyone does marketing; and
>> basically everyone has an occasional need to see files stored in the
>> various subfolders on the one shared directory on the server.  So we
>> don't make big use of groups.  Maybe we should, and everyone does
>> have a good domain logon password, but everyone has access to all the
>> shared files on the server.  (That is, we actually do use groups, and
>> everyone is a member of the one group.)
> In which case, there's no real need to rename user accounts to ensure
> people have access to the correct resources, since everyone pretty
> much has access to the same things.
>
>> We have always named a computer after the user who is sitting in
>> front of it.  Usually the user outlasts the computer (the employees
>> have generally been here 10+ years, while the computers last about
>> three).  I didn't know of any other logical way to assign things; as
>> I said, when I have reinstalled Windows on a computer, it asks "what
>> is your name" so I gave it the user's name, and that became (I think)
>> a local logon.  There is also a domain logon for that user.
>>
>> I want to preserve the icons on the desktop, as I mentioned before,
>> and those seem to change when you log in and out using different
>> names.
> This is always an issue when people want to migrate from workgroups to
> domains (or in your case a hybrid kind of setup).
>
>> So bottom line, the computer is *currently* named after the previous
>> person who sat in front of it.  I really can't go back in time and
>> change that.  Now, I would just as soon name the computer after the
>> new person who is sitting in front of it, so that we know that it's
>> Jane's computer when we see it in network neighborhood, or want to
>> connect to it to use her label printer, or whatever.  That's the
>> easiest and most logical way to name a computer, it seems.
> It can be, but then you come up against issues where people come and
> go. It's a compromise.
>
> In bigger environments where you never hang printers off the back of
> PCs, and have better processes to keep track of machines, the computer
> name is often irrelevant.
>
>> Even if I decided to no longer name it after a person, but instead
>> want to call the computer and the logon Reception or whatever, I
>> would still have the same question.  How do you rename a computer and
>> change the local logon and preserve the icons on the desktop and the
>> files in the My Documents folder?
> Renaming a computer doesn't affect user settings.
>
>> I am not so concerned about getting access to the
>> domain resources (the one shared folder); I know how to do that.
>> (The important files are on the server, but a few not-so-important
>> files are in My Documents, which is local to the computer, and I
>> would like to keep them there.)
> I hope they're being backed up regularly.
>
>> So probably we have done things non-optimally, but now that things
>> are the way they are, how can we rename the computer and the logon
>> and keep the icons and local documents?
> Renaming the computer isn't an issue in this regard.  Just go ahead
> and rename it.  Of course, if you have printers and other things that
> are shared, there will be a bit of trauma as this changes, but with
> only 7 PCs it should be fairly easy for your people to work things
> out.
>
> I would, however, recommend that the way forward is to dispense with
> the local accounts and just use domain accounts, certainly for any new
> employees.
>
> Regards
>
> Oli
>
>
>

>
> Another company I work for (as a programmer, not as a network admin) has
> 180 employees, and their computers are named after the users who are
> there, mostly so you know who to VNC into when you are helping them with
> a problem.  If the computers were named after asset tags, using VNC
> would be one hella pain.
>
> Your suggestions are noted, but I don't see any answers to my questions.

"DWalker" wrote:

> Thanks, see my comments below.
>
> "Oli Restorick [MVP]" <o**@mvps.org> wrote in
> news:#eDOeL9QGHA.5116@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl:
>
> > Hi there
> >
> > "DWalker" <n***@none.com> wrote in message
> > news:eh14Cj8QGHA.2536@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
> >> By "local account" I mean there is a local username that is created
> >> when the computer is set up... When you first install Windows (or
> >> turn on an OEM computer for the first time) it asks you for "your
> >> name".  Doesn't that name become a local logon?  There is a list of
> >> users who are allowed to log on to the local computer, and that's
> >> what I meant by local account.  Don't you HAVE to have a local
> >> account?  Maybe my terminology is wrong (I am a programmer but I
> >> don't have formal network or AD training).
> > The only local accounts you have to have are administrator and guest
> > (the latter is disabled by default).  When you set up an XP machine to
> > be part of a workgroup (rather than a domain), you are taken through a
> > wizard that asks you to create local accounts.  If you join the domain
> > during setup, you don't get this.  If you are prompted to create user
> > accounts, just create a dummy one and delete it when you're joined to
> > the domain.
> >
> >>> It is not considered good practice to rename user accounts to deal
> >>> with peopel coming and going.  I have never heard of people doing
> >>> that before.
> >>
> >> Never?  No one does this?  Not even in small companies?
> > Never seen anyone do it in practice.
> >
> >> How do you name your computers?
> > Personally, I use the asset tag (serial number) of the machine as its
> > names. Other naming shcemes I've seen are based on location.  For a
> > small company, how about naming machines after something abstract
> > (e.g. moons of Jupiter), cartoon characters, or something like that?
> >
> >>> When giving permissions to various resources, use groups.  As a
> >>> general rule (home directories being the exception), never assign
> >>> permissions on a resource to a user directly.  Give a group (e.g.
> >>> "Marketing department") permission to a resource, and make the
> >>> relevant users a member of that group.
> >>>
> >>
> >> There are 7 people in the company; everyone does marketing; and
> >> basically everyone has an occasional need to see files stored in the
> >> various subfolders on the one shared directory on the server.  So we
> >> don't make big use of groups.  Maybe we should, and everyone does
> >> have a good domain logon password, but everyone has access to all the
> >> shared files on the server.  (That is, we actually do use groups, and
> >> everyone is a member of the one group.)
> > In which case, there's no real need to rename user accounts to ensure
> > people have access to the correct resources, since everyone pretty
> > much has access to the same things.
> >
> >> We have always named a computer after the user who is sitting in
> >> front of it.  Usually the user outlasts the computer (the employees
> >> have generally been here 10+ years, while the computers last about
> >> three).  I didn't know of any other logical way to assign things; as
> >> I said, when I have reinstalled Windows on a computer, it asks "what
> >> is your name" so I gave it the user's name, and that became (I think)
> >> a local logon.  There is also a domain logon for that user.
> >>
> >> I want to preserve the icons on the desktop, as I mentioned before,
> >> and those seem to change when you log in and out using different
> >> names.
> > This is always an issue when people want to migrate from workgroups to
> > domains (or in your case a hybrid kind of setup).
> >
> >> So bottom line, the computer is *currently* named after the previous
> >> person who sat in front of it.  I really can't go back in time and
> >> change that.  Now, I would just as soon name the computer after the
> >> new person who is sitting in front of it, so that we know that it's
> >> Jane's computer when we see it in network neighborhood, or want to
> >> connect to it to use her label printer, or whatever.  That's the
> >> easiest and most logical way to name a computer, it seems.
> > It can be, but then you come up against issues where people come and
> > go. It's a compromise.
> >
> > In bigger environments where you never hang printers off the back of
> > PCs, and have better processes to keep track of machines, the computer
> > name is often irrelevant.
> >
> >> Even if I decided to no longer name it after a person, but instead
> >> want to call the computer and the logon Reception or whatever, I
> >> would still have the same question.  How do you rename a computer and
> >> change the local logon and preserve the icons on the desktop and the
> >> files in the My Documents folder?
> > Renaming a computer doesn't affect user settings.
> >
> >> I am not so concerned about getting access to the
> >> domain resources (the one shared folder); I know how to do that.
> >> (The important files are on the server, but a few not-so-important
> >> files are in My Documents, which is local to the computer, and I
> >> would like to keep them there.)
> > I hope they're being backed up regularly.
> >
> >> So probably we have done things non-optimally, but now that things
> >> are the way they are, how can we rename the computer and the logon
> >> and keep the icons and local documents?
> > Renaming the computer isn't an issue in this regard.  Just go ahead
> > and rename it.  Of course, if you have printers and other things that
> > are shared, there will be a bit of trauma as this changes, but with
> > only 7 PCs it should be fairly easy for your people to work things
> > out.
> >
> > I would, however, recommend that the way forward is to dispense with
> > the local accounts and just use domain accounts, certainly for any new
> > employees.
> >
> > Regards
> >
> > Oli
> >
> >
> >
>
> Thanks for the suggestions.
>
> Let's see, I want to print to the $100 label printer, which *is* hung
> off Mary's computer, since she uses it 90% of the time, and so it needs
> to be within arm's reach of her, and we didn't want to buy an Ethernet
> printer adapter for a $100 label printer, nor did we want to install a
> separate computer just to run a $100 label printer.  So it's on Mary's
> computer.  Now what's her computer called again?  Was it Europa?  Let's
> see what shared devices Europa has.  No, not there.  Maybe Callisto? 
> Yes, that's it!  Stupid IT department, it would have made more sense for
> them to name the computer Mary so I could find it!
>
> I wanted to:
>
> Rename a computer so that user A is not logging on with user B's name. 
> And make sure that this renaming process would not affect the computer
> desktop and icons.  In your zeal to criticize the way we have done
> things for 8 years, you didn't say much about that part of my question
> or answer how to avoid the problem.
>
> Rename a computer and also have the folder path name inside C:\Documents
> and Settings\Whatever change to the new user name, just so we don't have
> folders named after former employees.  You also didn't address this part
> of my question.
>
> Another company I work for (as a programmer, not as a network admin) has
> 180 employees, and their computers are named after the users who are
> there, mostly so you know who to VNC into when you are helping them with
> a problem.  If the computers were named after asset tags, using VNC
> would be one hella pain.
>
> Your suggestions are noted, but I don't see any answers to my questions.   
>
> David Walker
>